James's Cycle Challenge for Eco-congregation Scotland

During the week of Monday 29 July, I will be cycling 150 miles to raise funds for Eco-congregation Scotland.

Eco-congregation Scotland is a fantastic charity that works to encourage and support churches and volunteers across Scotland to take action for climate and nature.

I worked closely with friends at Eco-congregation Scotland in my last role, who played a leading role in coordinating activities and connecting faith groups ahead of COP26 in Glasgow. Earlier this year, I attended the Eco-congregation Scotland annual gathering in Stirling and met some of the amazing volunteers that the charity is working to support.

Eco-congregation Scotland has been a key organisation in supporting the campaign for Churches in Scotland to divest from fossil fuel companies. We worked together on joint webinars, fringe events at the Church of Scotland General Assembly and a Church leaders' statement before COP26.

Eco-congregation Scotland runs an award scheme for churches across Scotland - with over 620 churches from 16 denominations (one in six of all Scottish churches!) registered as Eco-congregations. Registrations of congregations continue to grow and demand for support remains high.

This is a crucial year for the future of Eco-congregation Scotland, especially given a recent end to core funding from the Scottish Government. It has continued to support a network of volunteers in local churches across Scotland, but due to financial pressures, it is currently operating with only part-time staff.

Through this challenge, I hope to play a small part in supporting the wonderful work that Eco-congregation Scotland is doing to support churches and volunteers across Scotland to respond to the climate and nature crises. I will post updates on how I am getting on.

Thank you so much for your support!

James